Following President Trump’s decision to import up to 300,000 metric tons of foreign beef without tariffs to lower consumer prices—which drew fire from ranchers—he announced Friday that he wants to make it easier for ranchers to process their own meat.
“I am authorizing legal documents to be drawn in order to allow farmers and ranchers to be given the right to process their own food. This should move quickly,” the president wrote in a Truth Social post.
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins followed up, adding that “big announcements” for the ranching sector are on the way, starting Monday.
These announcements will include: waiving red tape in processing, expanding ranchers’ ability to sell across state lines, rescinding outdated guidance, adding technology for faster safety data, expanding support for small processors through funding and deregulation, fighting consolidation so small processors can compete, and expanding truth in labeling.
“The world is hungry for American beef,” said Rollins.
Trump’s announcement does not repeal any food safety laws. The administration has not yet released formal plans or elaborated on which regulations it believes it can change. It’s important to note that much of the federal meat inspection system is established by Congress, not USDA regulation.
The beef with processing laws
As it stands, ranchers can sell meat directly to consumers so long as the animal was harvested and cut under federal or state inspection.
Only federally-inspected meat can be sold across state lines; state-inspected meat generally is limited to intrastate commerce unless the establishment participates in the federal Cooperative Interstate Shipment (CIS) program.
There are 937 federally inspected cattle slaughter plants in the nation. Of the 29.25 million cattle slaughtered last year, almost half were slaughtered by 11 giant facilities. The 888 smallest plants slaughtered just 1.92 million, or 7.14% of the total.
Depending on location, these plants can get booked up quickly. Some processors report kill dates are booked 6-12 months out, creating a real bottleneck for producers.
Beef supply chain 101
Ranchers raise animals, largely on grass. There are different types of cattle enterprises; many ranches have more than one.
